Part 1 of 3
Transcript:
Winston Marsh: WM
Pam Warren: PW
WM: Well, what a story Pam Warren’s had to tell us so far, first of all how she survived those horrific injuries from the train crash and then how she decided she could use her experience and learning from survival to change the way British Rail did things to make safer travel in future. Now we will hear about what Pam’s doing today, so let’s continue the story.
WM: So there must have been somethings you have learned from that anybody could use, first of all turning adversity into triumph and then into making things happen, it just wasn’t luck with you – you must have had a real plan that anyone can use in lots of situations.
PW: You are absolutely right, this is the one thing that I talk about a lot when I am speaking to people is that you don’t have to go through a major tragedy. If you like my story or listen to my story it just gives you time to pause and think and that pausing and thinking time use to your advantage. Things that I had to come up with that are invaluable in business one of which, that I’ve built into my new business, is the 3D thinking (see part 2). Also when you hit a problem think of it a bit like a river. When a river starts off it is going to come across all sorts of things as we do, it doesn’t stop, it keeps on going but if it hits an obstacle sometimes it can burble straight across it – in business you have a small problem you are probably going to be okay with a bit of rough water. Occasionally you are going to come across an obstacle or goal that is a bit bigger, in which case the river and this is my thinking now, it divides and flows around it. You can actually come up with a plan A, plan B or even a plan C and flow around your problem but you are still aiming for the same goal. Then the third analogy I use for this river, whether it be life or work, it can hit an obstacle that is so big, like a mountain that you can’t flow around it but all you simply do is stop, you divert and you carve out a new path and that again is how I very much approach my new business life.
Another thing I do is with opportunities. If someone presents me with an opportunity I will go and investigate it. I will either physically or mentally go and have a look at and research it a bit. If it makes sense and I can see it is going to help me reach that ultimate goal then, if you like, it becomes a tributary to my main river and so my river is getting wider and wider, but if it turns out it is not going to enhance anything or the path or the time is going to be so prohibitive that it is not going to help me reach my goal then I ignore it, I turn away from it. Saying no is actually one of the hardest things to do. But if you have taken that time to pause and think you can say no quite nicely, and gently and just explain that it is not for you, and it is not where you are travelling towards. Normally you will find that they will become irrelevant later in your journey and nine times out of ten it’s probably best to walk away.
WM: Yes, rather than waste the time. So how is your river flowing today Pam Warren?
PW: Well over here it is very early in the morning so I haven’t had my second cup of tea as you know, which I will rectify as soon as I finish with you, but yes my life now is wonderful. Instead of doing one job of work I am actually doing 5 different things, I am a public speaker, I have obviously written my book which you have kindly read, I work for three charities where they call me in when I am needed and then I come out when I am not needed so my life is very varied and there is always new things happening. On the personal side I travel a lot more, I have a big map up on my wall which has a picture of the world and I am sticking dots on it as I travel to new countries – I am actually covering a lot of the world at the moment. Again this will help satisfy my “life is too short” attitude now. You have to experience these new things and when you go to a new country, the thing I love about it is you are meeting new cultures and new people. You are immersing yourself in the history of that country and from each one I have visited I have come away with a little gem. Something that I have been able to either entwine in my life over here or take as a reminder of how life is great for when I have those little down times as my health is never fully recovered. So I yes I get a few down times occasionally but again I draw from my experiences of my travels to gee myself back up again.
WM: So, Pam Warren to anyone who is maybe struggling at the moment, what would you say? What encapsulates all of your belief?
PW: I really want to say to people, and not just on a personal level, that you may face things like redundancy or mortgages or a death in the family, those can be terrible tragedies and you will have to find the reserve within yourself but again you will be really surprised at how strong you are when you are put to the test.
From a business point of view if you are running your own business particularly I would say, build some time in to have that time to stop and think to reassess where is my company, where am I going, am I on the right path or do I need to divert or flow around a certain obstacle I can see coming up. If you can do that and build it in to your weekly schedule what you should find, as I do, that you are prepared for almost anything which then makes you much quicker of the mark than your competitors and you are continually evolving.
WM: Wow. What an inspirational person you are Pam, I hope all of our listeners not only listen carefully to what you have said but also use what you have said. I know now that as you travel the world you will be inspiring many people to overcome adversity and turn it into triumph just as you have.
Thanks for being with us on Business Marketing.
PW: Thank you Winston.
WM: So there we are, Pam Warren. Her book is “From Behind the Mask”, is a terrific read and I suggest you purchase it from the website and look out for Pam when she visits Australia, hopefully in the near future. You can hear her story and learn from her when she does visit, it will be fantastic.
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Speaker, Business Consultant and Mentor, Winston Marsh is acknowledged as being “probably Australia’s best and most experienced marketer, communicator and motivator.” Winston has over thirty years of richly rewarding business experience in the management, marketing and motivation of people in business. With his track record of achievement, he is just the person to stimulate and inspire you to take away action information that gets results.
@winstonmarsh